On the High Seas
by Giraffa
Summary: A tale of a female pirate merchant of a drug called Capilis in the world of Adellion. (www.adellion.com)


"You pay me now, or I forget you as a buyer for good." She said, her teeth showed in disgust. The woman in the pale yellow dress, embroidered and laced with a silk collar and sleeves was glaring at the gentleman in the back room of the inn.  
  
"Alright, okay. I cannot disappoint my customers. I will agree to your terms, but I do not agree to the change of plans. May I ask why?" The pudgy male dressed in finery whispered to the lady.  
  
"Supply is getting thin. Too much sabotage going on and destroying whole crops." She tossed over her shoulder at the man. She kept looking at the closed door behind her in her nervousness. "I am going to leave now, if I get suspicious, there is no deal at all." She turned around and headed for the door without hesitation.  
  
GiaPuakatai took a big breath of relief as she stepped outside the inn in Sningeha. It took her weeks to get here and finally track down the smuggler to escort her cargo to Abilash. Situations of uncertainty made her highly suspicious, and her paranoia was about to break her into fleeing from her employ completely.  
  
Even being on Pahina Hin itself made her unwary of any approaching persons, unlike her comfortable but yet chaotic isle of Grinorea Hin. With all of the civilized folk here, she would prefer having a meal with the piranha rather than with some of the scholars at the school of maritime. She always felt out of place, and a obvious fraud when she made her deliveries of Capilis.   
  
Gia was a woman of twenty-two years, very worldly, with the darkest brown skin and short black curled hair. She always wore a bandana atop her head to protect her from the sun of the endless seas of Grinorea Trok. Hidden underneath the cheap yellow-laced gown that she only wore when to sell her employer's product was years of scars, and pot marks from the hard labors and living conditions on her home isle.   
  
Gia walked swiftly to her ship, the Emerald Bolt, where the rest of the crew awaited for her return. They too were out of place in such a sophisticated city, dressed in rags and unbathed for months, keeping to themselves. Rigs was the winner of the lottery this time, naming the boat after two years since he joined the crew. Each time they left Grinorea Hin they painted a new name on the shipside as they sailed to the drop point, directed by their employer, still back at home, directing the season's next crop. As part of the lottery, he was to take all tips and extra profit as his own, and divide it amongst the crew as he saw fit. Of course, Gia was included on each trip, since she was the only one able to find buyers without causing suspicion. No proper lady would be caught selling Capilis without having balls and a cutlass hidden under her skirts.   
  
As she approached the ship, she broke stride only for a second to slow her pace and drag her feet a bit. She put on an air of disappointment and strode up the boarding plank. The crew turned to her and waited for news. Looking down at the boards of the deck, she announced, "Put away the fish wine and put the mackerel back into the hold..." She paused dramatically for an entire silence, everyone stopped moving and listened to her. "Because we've be getting kegs of ale and having ourselves a feast tonight!" She looked up and cheered with the rest of the crew as she tossed a small bag of ingots to the ship's cook. Huzzahs and impromptu dancing started as the crew interrupted their daily tasks.  
  
Grinning like a shark, Gia walked over to the aft of the Carrack and entered her cabin through the crew's hall. She locked the door behind her and began stripping off the detested gown and tossed it into a corner. Before reaching to untie the confining corset around her middle, she heard a low wolf whistle from behind her. She stopped her undressing and swung around, looking first for her cutlass and secondly to glare at Hawkins, the first mate.  
  
"Fly's balls, what do you want now Hawkins?" She eyed her cutlass hanging from its hook on the wall to her left. She relaxed as the elderly sailor eyed her he began to giggle. "Now, I'd be sinking to the bottom with those bottomless eyes of yours dearie. Relax. I am only here to tell you something about our future." She grabbed a stool and sat down, dressed in pantaloons and corset, barely more than what she usually wore upon the deck.  
  
"Be quick, I want to get out of this damn finery." She retorted, a bit disturbed by the interruption.  
  
"We might have nothing to go back to." He said drearily. "I heard a rumor back on the Hin that someone was going to raid the Master's plantation."  
  
"Rumor? Is that what you waited to tell me after I already made the sell off? I am certain that no one would dare to attack the plantation, even with us gone, he still has an army to hold them off with. I am not going to worry." Gia's stomach felt smaller for the first time in years as she took in the news. "Besides, if it did happen, then we'd be out of jobs, and I don't want to go back to step one as a slave." She waved her hand at him, ending the conversation and to leave her quarters.  
  
He obeyed, with a slight shrug, unlocking the door and leaving. A few crewmen wolf whistled seeing their crewmate half dressed. Laughing for a moment in mock modesty and covering herself, she lept up and tossed the stool out the door and crashing into the door across the hall, with a few yelps as the onlookers scuttled off. She closed and locked her door and continued to undress, and put on her linen shirt, doublet and breeches of dark red. Colored cloth was expensive in Grinorea Hin, all of her clothing was imported and tailored for her by her employer, and given a modest clothing allowance for her persona plays as she did business across the ocean.  
  
After tying on her thigh high soft boots, she found the cook on the dock, quickly ordering the crew to take the supplies down to his kitchen. "No time to waste, and the sooner the better." He said to no one in particular. He smiled at Gia, "Hey there scamp, guess what I obtained when you were down in your cabin with ol' Hawk. Never you mind on how I knew that. That ketch to our port just brought in a barrel of soft shell crabs, and I bought them all up for the feast tonight. With the ingots you gave me, we will be celebrating for two nights, and have enough to spare for goods on the trip back."   
  
"Great! You know I always loved your cooking, cookie. Just get a good lock on the inside of your kitchen door, or samples are going to be filling the crew's stomachs before its dinner." She retorted joyfully. Soft-shelled crabs were her favorite meal. Turning back to the ship, she hand signaled to them it was time to finish the deal and to unload the cargo. She had only a half a day left to complete the deal, and did not wish to sail off into complete darkness after finishing her side of the bargain.   
  
Ten of the crew carrying stitched bags of Capilis swiftly debarked the ship and followed her to a house near the wharf. She knocked then opened the door, entering casually with the others right behind her. She found an elderly man sitting in a rocking chair; the house looking more lived in than the old man was alive. Without words, he pointed to a bag of ingots, which Gia opened and checked for the amount, which took some time. Five hundred gold ingots exactly, she nodded and signaled the men to put the sacks of Capilis down, opening one just slightly enough for the man to see its contents. With a swift salute she and her crew exited and headed back to the Carrack to shove off.  
  
Leaving Sningeha they made an hour out of port before sunset. Making sure they were not followed, they raised the sail and pointed southwestward towards home, celebrating drunkenly with their success late into the night.  



End file.
